It may be deemed "newsworthy" to some, but at what point do we draw the line? There had to be what looked like at least 20 people milling about and all anyone could think of was to capture the moment on kodak? Sad...
It happened last week in a New York subway station but it's a story that isn't sitting well with people around the globe. How could it? The day was no doubt much like any other. Fairly busy New York Subway stop... but two men get into a scuffle - not so out of the norm really. BUT THEN, one man pushes the other off the platform and into the path of an (eventually) oncoming train.
On the scene happened to be a photographer for the New York Post - but this doesn't factor in quite yet. First, the 58 year old man who was shoved off the platform and no doubt terrified for his life - claws desperately at the edge trying to get off the tracks and out of deaths path. Imagine how he must have felt. I would think gripped with fear, eyes pleading for anyone, ANYONE to reach out and help him. But no one did. Not only did bystanders not jump in together at least try to pull him out (it may not have been successful but I think they could have tried) BUT (enter back into the picture the photographer) Umar Abbasi (the photographer) captures the eminent gruesome images on camera.
Wouldn't you like to think if it were you that you would drop the camera and run to help a fellow human being? I mean I just can't wrap my head around this. Instead Abbasi starts clicking pictures. His story is that he ran closer to the scene snapping his camera in hopes the flash would ward off the train... REALLY??? Now all that is left is a few disturbing (and well framed I might add) photos and a headline - "Doomed. Pushed on the subway track, this man is about to die." Oh, and a grieving wife and daughter as well...
News can be a touchy subject with a lot of grey areas and while there's no question sensationalizing can boost readership, what ever happened to decency and moral obligation?
Say the critics: "Even if you accept that the photographer and other bystanders did everything they could to try to save the man, it's a separate question of what the Post should have done with that photo... It was not illegal or unethical given that ethical guidelines and recommendations are not absolute... but this one crossed the line of dignity... I am all for maximizing truth telling, while minimizing harm, which can be done by fully vetting the alternatives available and publishing with a sense of compassion and respect." Agreed.
